the united nations general assembly voted today to recognize palestine as a non- member observer state. the tally was 138 to nine, with 41 abstentions. the u.s. voted no. it came after palestinian president mahmoud abbas appealed to the world body to issue the birth certificate of palestine. >> we did not come here seeking to delegitimize a state established years ago, and that is israel. rather, we came to affirm the legitimacy of a state that must now achieve its independence, and this is palestine. >> sreenivasan: palestinians said the vote would strengthen their hand in future peace talks with israel. but the israeli ambassador to the u.n., ron prosor, warned that the palestinians are turning their backs on peace. >> for as long as president abbas prefers symbolism over reality, as long as he prefers to travel to new york for u.n. resolutions rather than travel to jerusalem for genuine dialogue, any hope of peace will be out of reach. >> sreenivasan: meanwhile, a bipartisan group of u.s. senators said today they will push to cut off u.s. aid, if the palestinians use their new statu